EU demands political change in Syria

The European Union has formally adopted sanctions against Syria as a government crackdown on demonstrators sees hundreds dead.

Transcript

RICHARD DAVIES, PRESENTER: The European Union has formally adopted sanctions against Syria, issuing a list of 13 Syrian officials who will have their assets frozen and be banned from travelling to Europe.

Top of the list is president Bashar al-Assad's brother, who the EU describes as being the principle overseer of violence against the demonstrators.

The president himself has been excluded after disagreement between the European countries.

Middle East correspondent Ben Knight reports.

BEN KNIGHT, REPORTER: The tanks might have left the city of Daraa, but despite hundreds of deaths and thousands of arrests in Syria this rebellion is far from being over.

The Syrian Army has now reportedly moved into the cities of Homs, Banias and the capital, Damascus, part of which was sealed off on Monday.

The government says it's clearing out terrorist gangs, but protestors say security forces are going from house to house, arresting hundreds of people that are suspected as being part of the demonstrations.

The Syrian government is stepping up the pressure. It's trying to stamp out these protests once and for all, that have now been going on for almost eight weeks. The government is making some headway, but the country is still clearly in crisis.

Foreign journalists of course are not allowed into Syria, so the only official pictures coming out of the country are those provided by the government.

On Monday, it broadcast these: the funerals of four soldiers it claims were killed by protestors in the city of Homs. But human rights groups say more than 630 protesters have been killed, with thousands more wounded and arrested.

The United Nations says it's been denied access to the city of Daraa to assess the humanitarian need there, despite an apparent promise from the Syrian president to allow them in.

Now a British newspaper, the Daily Mail, says Bashar al-Assad's British-born wife has fled Syria for the UK with their three children.

The European Union says it has announced it will impose sanctions on 13 Libyan officials, including the president's brother and cousin, but so far decided not to sanction the president, Bashar al-Assad himself, with some EU countries preferring to impose the sanctions gradually.

Just as they were over Libya, the international community is divided over how to deal with Syria, and just like Libya, any hope that the crisis would sort itself out soon is fading.

Ben Knight, Lateline.

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